Australia’s Interior Designers & Decorators’ Secret to Styling a Home

A home is where the heart is and where we reside has a big influence on how we feel. For many people, having an aesthetic and pleasing interior is important.

While we may enjoy styling and decorating our homes, it may not always be an easy process in bringing everything together and making it work.

What are the secrets to styling a home?

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Typically a property that undergoes interior renovations and redecorating requires a lot of planning and thorough research.

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This is why seeking a professional becomes an essential part of the process and knowing what to expect is crucial.

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In this month’s article we are featuring Australia’s finest interior designers, architects and decorators.

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See how they have turned some very outdated styling into a modern and homely environment.

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Find out how they can give your home a facelift and grab their promotional offers to help you achieve your ideal home.

1.Entrance Door by Zanda Architectural Hardware

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Your front door is one of the most important element and it serves as the “window to the soul of your home”. People are very likely to be impressed by this feature at first sight.

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A stylish door matched with a statement pull handle can turn into a dramatic expression of your style and make a big impact to the overall impression to the rest of your home.

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Traditionally, a door handle was just seen as a functioning object and not much thought was put into it.

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However, as more and more people invest in building their own homes,

this small but very useful feature has become a popular demand in the way it looks.

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This is what you should look for when choosing pull handles to match your entry doors:
• Soft metallic look of brushed nickel
• 316 stainless steel
• Micronised / polished finish
• Matt black finish for a stylish and modern look

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A few important factors when choosing the right pull handle are:
Comfort – check for handle grip and smoothness.

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Ensure the handle is easy to use and you should think of others as well, especially for visitors with mobility challenges or limited strength and movement in their hands.

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For extra user comfort, you might like to consider handles that are contoured to suit the shape of the hand for easier grip.

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Strength – Is the handle strong, durable and weather proof – materials like aluminum, stainless steel, chrome and powder-coated steel are ideal for use on exterior doors as they won’t rust or corrode, and they require minimal maintenance.

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Quality – it is important to remember a pull handle will be used often so they need to be tough enough to withstand the amount of use without looking worn.

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Design – you want to make an impact visually by using an attractive and stylish door handle which suits the overall feel and style of the home.

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Functionality – select a handle that suits your needs and in some cases a keyless entry.

In today’s market there are a variety door handles that come in different type of materials, sizes and colours. Seamlessly blending style with quality, Zanda Architectural Hardwareentrance pull handles are at the forefront in architectural finesse and form.

2.Living Room by Tailored Artworks

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The primary purpose of the living area is to relax, lounge with friends and family or simply entertain guests.

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For many people this is the common area in the household so it should be given a lot of attention to detail when designing and decorating this space.

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Brisbane’s expert artist and decorator Sharron Tancred says that when you have large open plan, a very common architectural style these days,

it isn’t more furniture or more ornaments that clutter your space but a simple secret of placing the right artwork can make a huge difference.

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This is because the focal point (artwork) fills in the empty big space without actually making the living room feel too busy or too bare.

Before

After

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Colour and layout should be relevant to your architecture, furniture and accessories. If you look at your living room and it’s symmetrically balanced,

it could be a formal layout where you then balance your furniture to follow this neat arrangement.

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If the space is different from one side to the other, this is an asymmetrical and more informal, relaxed layout; balance your furniture, so it looks good in the space.

Take the colours from your palette and follow suit, being careful to balance them around the room.

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For a restful décor, choose green, blue-green and blue and for energy, red, orange, yellow and yellow-green.

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If your living room receives hot afternoon heat, choose a cool palette and vice versa for a cold room.

Bringing the Outdoors Inside

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Highlight your living rooms’ best features by dressing them accordingly. Purchase or commission proportionate artwork for your massive wall.

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If you have lots of small stuff, remember that numerous artworks and photos create clutter, so balance your smaller objects with large artwork.

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If you have a cathedral ceiling, hang an impressive chandelier. If the room is vast and your lounge is centred within it, ensure your place a rug larger than the suites perimeter.

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Add punches of black for contrast and add elements of comfort and luxury so you feel like cuddling into them and more at home.

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Learn to look at your space through its lines, or ‘grid’ if you will – the horizontal and vertical lines of your furniture and architecture!

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By measuring art to line up with your living rooms grid, you will tidy it. Next, create an elegant, peaceful living room that is still warm and comforting.

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While horizontal lines, curves and textures will warm your space, getting the size and proportion right in fact creates a strategic focal point for your living room,

and, hopefully one that is all about you too! A focal point will settle the décor and ground it.

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Hang artwork so that its centre is at eye level, 150-155cm above the floor and, to create a grouping with your furniture, ensure that your artwork is only 2 fists, or 20-25cm above a console, lounge, bedhead etc.

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Too many people hang art so it’s floating in space or worse, leave it resting on a console which looks lazy and unfinished.

3.Kitchen and Dining Area by Rocco Revolution

The kitchen is usually everyone’s favourite place because it’s where food is prepared and served.

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Often the most nourishing and nurturing place in a home and is also occupied for so many things other than just cooking.

So, such a versatile space requires a design that can be adapted to suite a variety of different uses.

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In the past, to have a kitchen in its own separate room was a big thing but

in recent years this has changed with open plan living being a massive trend.

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We work on a lot of multi-residential developments so for us it’s important that the kitchen doesn’t consume the entire living space.

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We like our kitchens to fall back – camouflaging appliances and maximising storage by specifying floor to ceiling cabinets with push to open doors.

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Not only does this make the space feel larger but it allows accent fixtures or finishes to sing.

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We love to try and incorporate custom joinery in all of our projects as it gives us the opportunity to tailor the storage to our client’s needs as well as have complete control on how the finished product is going to look.

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Ideally having your entire kitchen run along the wall works best as it makes the space feel more open.

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Then depending on how big the space is, you can install a kitchen island which will allow for even more storage as well as more bench space.

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In terms of colour, we have recently seen a trend in dark walls over the last couple of years but

if that is too risky for you, we would stick to blending the joinery with your white walls and selecting a feature bench top or splashback to lift the space.

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The key to bringing out the best features is keeping everything around it simple. So, if you want your marble to be the focal point of your room,

don’t let it compete with busy joinery or hardware.

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We love to incorporate smokey mirror splashbacks in the kitchen. We love how the soft tone reflects the other surfaces in the room and the way the light bounces off it.

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It can also be quite a cost effective solution as well as really easy to maintain.

Rocco Revolution is an Interior Design & Styling studio that work on a variety of residential and commercial projects. To learn more about Rocco Revolution click here.

We will professionally establish the design direction of your project (valued at $600). “It’s the perfect way to begin your design journey with us!”

4. Wallpapers by Luxe Walls

The DIY Way To Wallpaper Your Walls

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Wallpaper is a stand out trend that continues to gain momentum. No longer are we tied to the wallpapers of our grandparents’ era – instead we have an endless cache of patterns and imagery to choose from.

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The advances in digital imagery have allowed us the freedom to cover our walls not only in intricate repeating patterns,

but also striking photography. Stunning textural images can be incorporated into decorating ideas, allowing us to follow home decorating trends otherwise out of reach.

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Luxe Walls enables people to personalise their rooms and create the ambience they desire. With access to over 100 million images through their image partner, the choice is endless.

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Luxe Canvas is a modern DIY wallpaper. Made of polyester fabric, our removable wallpaper has a peel and stick, self adhesive backing.

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Installing is as simple as peeling the backing paper off and placing the panel on the wall. If you get a bubble, crease or are not happy with the positioning, simply peel it off the wall and start again.

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Alternatively, bubbles can easily be wiped out with a clean, white cloth. Removing the wallpaper is just as easy – simply peel it off the wall.

Trends to watch

Industrial

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The industrial trend is one that people are loving at the moment.

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Cool concrete with the warmth of timber works well in all rooms of the home.

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The most popular concrete wallpapers currently at Luxe Walls are Grungy White Concrete wallpaper and Industrial Concrete wallpaper.

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Our Wooden Panel wallpaper is also popular and can have its colours customised and panel widths altered, which is appealing to our customers.

Marble Finishes

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Marble gives a sense of luxury and installing wallpaper with a marble image is an easy way to add texture to your interiors.

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For something different, use marble wallpaper on your splashback – just remember to cover it with a glass splashback to protect the wallpaper.

Botanical

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Adding greenery to your room gives it an instant lift. Plants soften hard surfaces and add a new dimension to your room.

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Wallpaper allows you to achieve this look without having to worry about plant maintenance!

Floral

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An all time favourite, floral wallpapers come in many designs and colours.

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With the ability to customise our artworks

and change the scale of the pattern, florals can take on a completely different look. 67.

Blown out blooms can create real impact in a room.

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Geometric

Geometric patterns are currently on trend and work back beautifully with the sleek lines of mid century furniture.

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Whether your pattern has strong lines or gentle curves, they will bring your walls to life.

Contemporary

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Watercolour wallpapers are hugely popular with their changing colours adding interest, whilst giving a relaxing vibe.

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Contemporary patterns are also popular, especially for children’s rooms.

No matter what room you are renovating, Luxe Walls can help individuals achieve your goals. Luxe Walls’ wallpaper has a flat price of $79 per square meter and can be ordered at www.luxewalls.com.au.

5. Furnishing by Tailored HQ

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We’re seeing a braver use of colour in larger pieces such as curtains and bedheads. These are a great way to inject colour.
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Don’t be afraid of colour – no matter the season. Colour doesn’t have to mean bright pops. We’re loving the use of navy and hunter greens.

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These deep colours can be lightened or darkened by what is around it.

Using autumnal colours such as browns, ambers and bronzes in accessories subdues these rich colours whilst bringing a classic and timeless feel.

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